[JRace]

20 Hz is an arbitrary goal that the industry set in the 1960's to be applied to electronics.

You mean it has nothing to do with the fact that our hearing system goes down to 20Hz?

[JLM]

True, it's a common misunderstanding.  If it were true then headphones would only reach down to 400hz or so!

Wouldn't headphone cut off be more like 9000 Hz (13,500 inches per second, the speed of sound at normal atmospheric pressures/temperature, and assuming a 1.5 inch maximum dimension from headphone diagram to ear drum)?

By this concept earbuds would be even worse (virtually unworkable for human hearing).

[planet10]

The untrained ear can be easily fooled into believing that it's hearing deep bass.

Even a trained ear can get he impression of deep bass… you know it is not there, but there are enuff clues to still make the music flow. This was hammered home with the latest prototype speakers, a set of ScanSpeak 10F in a small miniOnken, which might reach 120-130 Hz with a wind, can in many/most instances produce the illusion of having bass.



dave

[Russell Dawkins]

Wouldn't headphone cut off be more like 9000 Hz (13,500 inches per second, the speed of sound at normal atmospheric pressures/temperature, and assuming a 1.5 inch maximum dimension from headphone diagram to ear drum)?

By this concept earbuds would be even worse (virtually unworkable for human hearing).

Exactly what I was thinking. It's heartening for me to see this notion (the minimum room size requirement for bass) debunked.

[JLM]

Even a trained ear can get he impression of deep bass… you know it is not there, but there are enuff clues to still make the music flow. This was hammered home with the latest prototype speakers, a set of ScanSpeak 10F in a small miniOnken, which might reach 120-130 Hz with a wind, can in many/most instances produce the illusion of having bass.



dave

I first heard the premise expressed by Irving M. (Bud) Fried back in the 70's.  Slow roll off was the key in his opinion.  Dave, do the Onken cabinets behave more like sealed, aperiodic, or ported?

[planet10]

do the Onken cabinets behave more like sealed, aperiodic, or ported?

They are vented enclosures that are pushed towards aperiodic due to the high aspect ratio vents. This makes them more tolerant of dynamic changes in T/S parameters leading to more conistent articulate bass.

These are not actually Onkens in the official definition of an onken enclosure, i just borrowed the vents after 1st seeing them in a late '70s Audax applications book.

dave